Aaron Speca - Me and My Others

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Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Leading up to the August 20 release of Progeny of Sin: Dark Dreams, Dawn and I reminisce about how our collaboration got started ...

Aaron

For me, Dark Dreams started a little over four years ago. It’s hard to believe it’s been that long! But the story started a while before that.

Dawn and I first “met” as part of an online roleplay writing group. Such are the wonders of the virtual world. Although we rarely had occasion to write together directly, I was always impressed with the humor and sensuality Dawn wrote into her character.

Early in 2011, Dawn approached me with a manuscript she had been working on, the first in a series she had called “Children of Sheol”. She needed an editor, and thought to come to me for assistance. Now, I’d never edited anything, although I did have a deal to get a short story published with another writing partner. So after literally warning her of my lack of experience, I got to work.

I immediately enjoyed the read! It was obvious this was a labor of love for her, and I committed myself to doing the best job I possibly could to help her make her dream of becoming published a reality.

We talked, exchanged edits and ideas, and then amazingly, I was asked to come onboard the project as a co-author. The first submittal we made was into the Harlequin “So You Think You Can Write” competition, where we submitted the first chapter and it was voted on by readers. Although we didn’t quite make it into the final round (we were close), Harlequin still wanted to see the full manuscript. They eventually passed on it, but the experience was invaluable.

Then we discovered that HarperCollins was starting a new imprint called HarperImpulse, a digital-first imprint that was looking for new submissions and seemed like a good fit for Dark Dreams. We bit the bullet and went for it, and our lovely editor Charlotte Ledger decided to give us a chance! She suggested a change to the series name which we took to heart, and Children of Sheol became Progeny of Sin.

Make no mistake about it, Progeny of Sin is Dawn’s story. I will be forever honored that she came to me to help her bring it to life. It’s not like she had a shortage of great writers to choose from. I consider myself very lucky to be a part of it. It has been an amazing ride that hopefully has only just begun!

I began the process of writing Dark Dreams as a solo writer. I was going through a time in my life when I was seeking an escape. After reading 38 novels in eight months, I closed the last book and decided it was time for me to set out on my own adventure.

Two of the heavy influences for Dark Dreams were Dante Alighieri’s Inferno and Paradise Lost by John Milton. As a lover of everything dark, creepy, sexy and intriguing my mind began to do two things. Fall in love with the power and intelligence of Milton’s Satan and all his demonic underlings; and wonder what it would be like to follow a “good” version of this character through Alighieri’s layers of Hell.

Let me stop here and explain that my comprehension and patience for endless poetry written in a way I can barely understand only went so far. I suppose in some ways this is a good thing, my remedial grasp of the literature allowed me the creative freedom to take the basic concepts and twist them into that sweet spot where love and romance intertwine with the darkness in my head.

So, how does any of this relate to being a partner in a writing duo? Well, I wrote my vision, I created what I think is the perfect man, tall, dark, demonic, slightly controlling and sexy as Hell but deep down you know that this being would rescue a kitten from a house fire. When I finished my journey was 86,000 words…and a total catastrophe.

This is when I found Aaron. Aaron’s role-play character was the boyfriend of my sister; hilarious I know, role-play can be so much fun. I started reading everything Aaron wrote. I was pulled into his character because of the detail with which he thought out his scenes and the organizational skills he had as a writer and a group leader. I tried for a year to edit Dark Dreams. It was not in me. This piece needed another person, someone who had skills I did not possess. It needed Aaron.

I asked Aaron to take a look at Dark Dreams as an editor at first, and quickly realized that he could add to it and give it a shape it just didn’t have. I asked him to join me as a partner and he went through it once, twice, three times, I lost count. He is now a piece of this work. We go back and forth with ideas and usually agree about the direction the story should take.

HarperImpulse not only will soon release Dark Dreams but has also purchased its sequel tentatively titled, Dark Fate. Aaron and I are excitedly working on this piece now. It will include the same delicious daemons you will fall in love and lust with, during the first novel, and a whole new dark escape to fall into. Until then…

Progeny of Sin: Dark Dreams will be released on August 20 and is now available for pre-order!

The Devil wants his due … The Daemon wants his out … and Jade just wants it all to be over. You don't always get what you want.

Jade Shear is an ordinary girl with an extraordinary ability that’s literally about to send her to Hell. When Daemons discover Jade’s power to read and manipulate others true feelings, they force her to assist with the rescue of their sibling; thrusting her from her everyday normality deep into the Underworld with the tall, dark and deliciously demonic Nias Hu’dor assigned as her guide.

All Nias wants is to live out his life without being involved with anyone else. No more emotion, no more connections, especially to pain in the ass humans. But when he sees Jade twisting a long curl of her wild red hair, and showing off the most amazing backside he’s ever been privy to; Nias just knew he was staring at a world of trouble. How could his family have enlisted him to obtain this girls help to traverse Sheol?

This dark paranormal romance takes you from Jade’s everyday existence into the world of the Djinn Sentry; an army of demonic solders determined to protect the human race; and then plummets you straight down into the seething malevolent Underworld where a multi-levelled caste system of Shaitan and the Devil himself welcome you.

Thursday, June 25, 2015

I know I have not been here in a while, and I am sorry for that ... but it's time for some big news. After many months, Progeny of Sin: Dark Dreams by Dawn Treadway and Aaron Speca is finally ready for release! Here are the cover, synopsis, and links. We will be posting more news up to the release date of August 20, 2015!

The Devil wants his due … The Daemon wants his out … and Jade just wants it all to be over. You don't always get what you want.

Jade Shear is an ordinary girl with an extraordinary ability that’s literally about to send her to Hell. When Daemons discover Jade’s power to read and manipulate others true feelings, they force her to assist with the rescue of their sibling; thrusting her from her everyday normality deep into the Underworld with the tall, dark and deliciously demonic Nias Hu’dor assigned as her guide.

All Nias wants is to live out his life without being involved with anyone else. No more emotion, no more connections, especially to pain in the ass humans. But when he sees Jade twisting a long curl of her wild red hair, and showing off the most amazing backside he’s ever been privy to; Nias just knew he was staring at a world of trouble. How could his family have enlisted him to obtain this girls help to traverse Sheol?

This dark paranormal romance takes you from Jade’s everyday existence into the world of the Djinn Sentry; an army of demonic solders determined to protect the human race; and then plummets you straight down into the seething malevolent Underworld where a multi-levelled caste system of Shaitan and the Devil himself welcome you.

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

I'm helping out my fellow writer Nic Tatano with a new effort he's trying out - The Story Bundle! What if ten stories in a particular genre were packaged up for you to try? And then, you could pay whatever you think they are worth? That's the somewhat radical concept behind the Story Bundle.

Nic can explain it better than I, which is why you should head over to his blog to check out the details. Plus you can register to win a $100 Kindle gift card ... sounds like a win-win to me!

Nic is also the author of the Jillian Spectre series ... you can check them out here ...

Friday, March 13, 2015

Today I am very happy to have Lorraine Wilson on the blog, fresh off her new release! Lorraine, please introduce yourself ...

I live in Wiltshire, England, with my husband but love to
travel and have lived in four continents. From playing amidst Roman ruins in
Africa as a child to riding a Sultan's racehorse in the Middle East as a teen,
I’ve many
experiences to draw on for the stories I’ve been writing ever since I can remember. When I’m not writing you'll find me
listening to audiobooks while I sew or design handbags, usually with a rescue
terrier or two curled up on my feet!

Lorraine, when did you first think about writing for
publication?

I wrote a book that tackled the subject of bullying when I was fifteen
and definitely thought about publication but didn't have the confidence to
submit anything to a publisher until I was in my thirties.

Tell us one thing about yourself that you think might surprise
us.

I once touched a
hippogriff! I used to work at one of the Inns of Court in London and the
Prisoner of Azkaban launch party was held there. The Tudor hall was turned into
Hogwarts with 'floating' candles suspended from the ceiling and the shops from
Hogsmeade. All the props were kept on the floor I was working on and I couldn't
resist having a root through!

So you have a lot of news this month, your short story “Chalet
Girl Plays Cupid” was released last week, and
the fourth novella in the associated Chalet Girl series, “Rebellion
of a Chalet Girl”, comes out March 26th. Congratulations! Tell us a bit about the series and the
inspiration behind it.

I spend a lot of
time in Switzerland and absolutely love it. The mountain landscape is a perfect
dramatic backdrop and it's the perfect setting for romantic stories- it
has snow, hot tubs, luxury and roaring log fires. Even if you don't like skiing
there's still the après ski to soak up. My stories are meant to be fun and little bit escapist but I
like to tackle more serious subjects in the stories too. I write about the kind of emotional
baggage a lot of people carry around with them but rarely talk about.

Are you planning future installments or do you have something
else in mind?

Ah, now that
would be telling! There is one more novella planned but there are also some
longer projects in the pipeline that I'm super excited about :-)

If there is one character that you’ve written or are writing that you would really
like people to meet, who would it be and why?

I think most
people would like to meet Sophie. In fact I'd quite like to visit Bar des Amis
myself and hang out there with Sophie, Luc and their scruffy rescue terrier
Max!

What about the book industry in general has most surprised
you?

The amount of
work there is to do after you write the book! I suppose I assumed you
sent your book off and then got on with the next one. The amount of time needed
to spend marketing and on social media was a bit of a shock, although there are
aspects of it that I love, like chatting to readers.

Is there someone you can point to as being your biggest
encouragement in moving forward with writing?

My English
teacher told me when I was thirteen years old that I had the talent to be a
writer. She planted the seed in me that I might be good enough and I'm very
grateful to her for that.

Then I suffered
a brain injury five years ago and was told by my neurosurgeon I'd never be able
to write a book. I almost gave up but my support worker, a speech and language
therapist, refused to let me and taught me to use speech to text software.

What do you do to get fired up to write? Do you have a ritual or a particular
inspiration?

Tea and
chocolate. I'm very English!

Is there a particular genre other than contemporary romance
that you might like to try someday?

I'd love to
write historical fiction. I read history at Oxford University and do have several
novel ideas but I know they'll take a lot of research that I'm probably not up
to, health wise, just yet.

What other things do you have bouncing around in your head for
the future?

Again, that
would be telling ;-)

To close the interview, I have ten questions for you, plus
one. Here they go!

What is
your favorite word? Mutt.

What is
your least favorite word? Pain.

What turns
you on? My imagination!

What turns
you off? Feeling ill.

What sound
or noise do you love? A running stream.

What sound
or noise do you hate? Traffic.

What is
your favorite curse word? Hell.

What
profession other than your own would you like to attempt? Seamstress/Dress
designer.

What
profession would you not like to do? Shelf stacker.

If heaven
exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly
gates? Lovely to see you!

What
question have you never been asked, that you wish someone would ask you? What
do you want people to get from your books? I hope readers will get enjoyment,
entertainment and a bit of escapism from my stories. Also I'd like to think
that by tackling real life problems in a realistic but hopeful way I might be
able to help someone dealing with the same issues.

Lorraine, thanks so much for spending time with us. Can you let us know where to follow you, and
where we can go to purchase your books?

You can find out
more about the Chalet Girl series and any new releases via my Facebook author page.

To celebrate having two releases this month I’m running a special
competition. Enter for a chance to win a Lorraine Wilson Design Shoulder Bag
made with novelty magazine cover fabric, a Chalet Girl book bag complete with
signed copies of all 4 Chalet Girl Paperbacks!

Friday, February 20, 2015

Jen Winters is an independent author, entering the world of self-publishing through digital media formats. Her first book, Kissing Demons, is a paranormal romance and available for Kindle and Kindle Unlimited.

Jen is a mom, a wife, a homeschool teacher, supporter of indie authors and a lover of paranormal romance and urban fantasy. You can connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, and enjoy a diversion in to homeschooling on her other blog, The Slamdunk Homeschool.

Jen, when did you
first think about writing for publication?

Six years ago I found myself at a loss. I had an 8-month-old
and my husband-at-the-time had left us to pursue a different life. I had zero
marketable skills and a bachelor degree that was utterly useless. The only
thing I had was a lot of people who encouraged me to publish some of my
writing. So, I decided I wanted to try my hand at writing for a career and I
put my pen to paper. That was March 2009.

Tell us one thing
about yourself that you think might surprise us.

I am so utterly normal, but I do homeschool my children and
I think that surprises some people because we are so utterly normal. We don’t
give off that homeschool vibe.

Your first novel,
“Kissing Demons” was released this past December. Tell us a bit about this book and the
inspiration for it.

Kissing Demons is a paranormal romance that takes place
mostly in the Dallas/ Ft. Worth area. I
had been reading Sherrilyn Kenyon’s dark-hunter series at the time and she very
much influenced my writing. The Guardians are women who during their first life
lost a child and are now in their second life protecting others from the same
loss. I based my main character on Beatrice Marguerite de Geneve, and called
her Geneva Archer. I think you’ll like her!

As this is the first
book of the series, give us an idea of what we might see in future
installments.

The second in the series is called Falling Angels and it is
written from the perspective of a fallen angel named Ambrose. He is good to the
core, but bitter about his fate, sarcastic, and temperamental. This novel will
give the reader a chance to get to know Yuruch (the antagonist in Kissing
Demons) better as well. Lavinia will get her respite and Ambrose will figure
out what destiny and redemption really are.

The third is called Raising Hell, and it will be a story of
redemption for Yuruch. I haven’t gotten far along it, yet, but I do know that
there will be a bit of archeology involved. How’s that for a teaser?

What drew you to
write in the paranormal romance genre?

I love PNR! I love the escape it provides, the hope for magic
and romance, and I love the idea that love can come from the most unexpected
place. My own story of love could be written into a PNR if I embellished the
angelic interference a bit.

If there is one
character you’ve written or are writing that you would really like people to
meet, who would it be and why?

Joseph of Aramithea. People need more unconditional,
enduring, undeserved love in their lives.

What made you decide
on self-publishing versus traditional publishing?

James Patterson’s huge success as an independent novelist
has been a great driving force for me. That and my mother who thought indie
publishing would be good for me.

What about the book
industry in general has most surprised you?

As an indie author I have found a huge support network with
other indies. It has been amazing and I didn’t even know that we were such a
tight-knit group before I published. I hadn’t read a single indie book and now
I can say that I have read more indies this year than traditional. The support,
reviews, help and friendship I have found has been amazing!

Is there someone you
can point to as being your biggest encouragement in moving forward with writing?

My father has kept on me since I decided to write for
publication until today saying, “Finish the book, Jen.” Love that man.

Is there a particular
genre other than paranormal romance that you might like to try someday?

I am thinking about writing a New Adult novel with an old
writing partner. We have other books we are finishing up right now, but as soon
as we are in a good place, we are going to write together.

What other things do
you have bouncing around in your head for the future?

This is a funny question. Everyday a new idea comes to me.
I’ve been considering doing a BBW PNR for a while, and it is slowing making its
way to the top. I even have a character name and setting: Mitchell (werewolf),
Rosie (human), and Great Bend, NE.

To close the
interview, I have ten questions for you, plus one. Here they go!

What is your favorite word? flabbergasted

What is your least favorite word? C@nt

What turns you on? The smell of oil and gasoline on my hubby (he’s
a mechanic).

What turns you off? Metro-sexuals are completely unappealing to me.
Nothing personal to my metro-friends, and they know that.

What sound or noise do you love? My favorite is when one of my kids
is playing pretend all by themselves.

What sound or noise do you hate? My son’s screech when he’s mad
(working on that).

What is your favorite curse word? I don’t really have one, but I do
let the bird fly when appropriate.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? I
think I might like to be a mortician. Macabre, I know, but…

What profession would you not like to do? Pest-control…ewww

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive
at the pearly gates? Well done.

What question have you never been asked, that you wish someone would
ask you? Were there moments that you found difficult to write? What were
they?

Jen, thanks so much
for spending time with us. Can you let
us know where to follow you, and where we can go to purchase your books?

Saturday, February 14, 2015

In 2012, on this blog, I examined the phenomenon of online
e-book piracy in a five-part series. In
that series, I attempted to examine the reasons behind piracy, the impact that
piracy could have on the publishing industry over time, and even tossed some ideas
around about the way the industry might eventually change to make piracy less
attractive to consumers. That series can
be found at the links below, and I think it’s a really good read for those who
want to get educated on at least some of the issues surrounding this
controversial topic.

It’s nearly three years later, and the industry is
ever-evolving. Independently published
(a.k.a. self-published) books are more common than ever. E-books are beginning to outpace printed
books. The Amazon Lending Library has
been developed and led to other e-book lending programs. Subscription services for e-Books that
operate similarly to Netflix have begun to spring up.

But there’s one article that caught my eye recently and made
me want to visit the issue, and that is the possibility of the selling of used
e-books.

There has always been a used book market. In fact, there have been stores that have
specialized in the selling of second-hand books. I know when I was in college, one would actively
seek out used textbooks (as long as the newest editions was not required). They were cheaper – one expected that the
books would have some wear and tear but was willing to accept that for the
lower price.

It is now reported that a group is working with “one of the
world’s largest booksellers” in order to start up a used e-book
marketplace. Presumably, this would be a
place for sellers to load their digital books for resale once they are done
with them.

So that brings us to the big question – would such a
marketplace even be legal? The legal
question involves the “first-sale doctrine” which prevents copyright holders
from stopping the sale, trade, or lending of legally acquired property. This is what makes things like used
bookstores and Gamestop’s used video game market possible. It also is what legally allows an owner of a
DVD to let their neighbor borrow it.

There are a couple of key premises that make the “first-sale
doctrine” work. First, it was
established in the early 20th century, at a time when the concern
was the resale and lending of a physical good.
Physical goods, including books, sound recordings, and film, deteriorate
over time. Thus it is a given that the
thing being resold or lent had lost some of its quality, thus some of its
value. This is a new time, and digital
media has no such “shelf life”. The file
is the same quality whether it is the initial sale or it has changed hands
dozens or even hundreds of times.

The second premise, and perhaps the hardest to enforce, is
that upon resale or lending the product actually changes hands. This means that the item should become
unusable to the seller or lender. (Actually,
this is how Amazon lending works on the Kindle – when one user lends a book to
another, it becomes unreadable by the lender until the borrower “returns” it.) This is where things can get sketchy. For example, one e-book resale site can only
operate “on the honor” of the lenders, that they no longer have a copy of the
e-book.

However, there’s a flaw in the system that could hurt the bookstore’s defense. One of the key provisions of the UsedSoft ruling was that, in order for the transaction to be legal, the seller must “make the copy downloaded onto his own computer unusable at the time of resale.”

Tom Kabinet has no way of ensuring that this has happened, so it is easily possible for someone to both keep and sell the ebooks they’ve bought. The company can only run an honor system, asking people to confirm that they purchased the ebook legally and that they have deleted their own copy. - David Meyer, from an article on Gigaom.com

This is where the distinction MUST be made between
transference of a product, and creating another copy of the product, because if
this distinction is not made and enforceable, then what could result is a form
of legalized piracy. Think about it … as
a consumer I might choose to buy a $0.99 used e-book instead of a $2.99 “new”
version off of Amazon. This might be
alright if it is only the one copy that the seller owned that is being
sold. But what if that person is just
putting up endless copies of the e-book while they retain a copy for themselves,
and selling each one at $0.99 where only they (and perhaps the marketplace) see
that money?

Personally, I am keeping an open mind about this to see how
things turn out, but authors should be vigilant about these potential changes to
the marketplace.

Authors, what are your thoughts on this potential used
e-book effort? And readers, how would
you feel about a used e-book marketplace, or do you think the momentum is
headed more towards subscription services?

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Book
Two of the Midnight Kiss Series, set in the dynamic world of ONE KISS…

Blurb: You have to take
a risk to live an adventure.

Determined, capable, and primed to rock her first big marketing
conference, Stacy Saunders is not about let to anything get in the way of her
ambition. It's been a long time since she's been in New Orleans, but she has no
use for beads or Bourbon Street. She built a strict itinerary for this trip –
one that certainly didn't include running into the gorgeous Tennyson Landry
again.

A chance reunion between the former lovers brings old feelings to the
surface and the possibility of rekindling old flames. Their second time around
could be the best time of all – if they can bridge the gap even wider than the
thousand miles between them…

All Rights
Reserved, Harper Impulse, a Division of HarperCollins Publishers

Bourbon
Street was just as she remembered—loud music and neon lights, frat boys in muscle
shirts and girls in crop tops, the stench of beer and pine-scented antiseptic
cleaner, the sidewalks littered with garbage and puke. Their little entourage
stumbled into the first club they found, which had “Play That Funky Music”
blaring from the speakers. Stacy shook her head. Some things truly never
changed. Bars on Bourbon Street would play that song until some ultimate, catastrophic
apocalypse finally managed to wipe the city out for good.

The
barker at the door proudly announced that the club was now offering their world
famous three-for-one happy hour. The vodka tonic Stacy ordered was served in a
plastic cup the size of which was rarely seen outside of a 7-Eleven. It
contained more alcohol than any human should probably ever consume in a single
serving, and she was glad to see that in addition to the bad music, the
drinking culture had not changed either.

She
headed toward the back of the club, outside into the little courtyard area
where the music was somewhat blunted and she was less likely to have a drink
spilled over her. The others followed, people in the group talking amongst
themselves and goggling at the drunken antics on the dance floor. Peter had
fallen back to walk alongside Melanie, and they ambled slowly, their heads
close together, taking softly. Stacy sighed. So much for the whole reason to
participate in this journey. Not that she could blame him. Melanie was
gorgeous. Still, the rejection stung. Not that it would’ve worked anyway. The distance
between them would have eventually become a hassle.

She
sipped her cocktail, watching the dance floor light up red, then blue, then green
as the strobe light pulsed over the dancers. Once again, she had a choice and
none of her options were all too appealing. She could go back to the hotel and
try to find a new group of people to talk with, she could go to bed, or she
could stay right where she was and basically drink alone.

“Let’s
go someplace quieter,” Peter shouted over the music and everybody agreed.

She
followed them back out onto Bourbon Street, seriously considering her next
move. Should I stay or should I go now?
She let the chorus play out in her head and in that one millisecond pause, a drunken
man wearing only jeans shorts and plastic beads lunged at her from the crowd.
She sidestepped around him and almost collided with a woman exiting Pat
O'Briens. The woman squealed and Stacy veered off the sidewalk into the street.
A group of tourists swept her away, forcing her backward along with them. She
fought against the wave of bodies, but it was a losing battle. And then, out of
nowhere, a hand grabbed her arm, a lifeline in the storm.

The
tourists continued on their journey, but Stacy was held in place, firmly
anchored by that strong grip. The hold on her arm was a little too familiar for
a stranger and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to thank or berate her rescuer.
She turned, and her breath caught when she recognized her savior. “Hello, Ten.”

“Hey,
Stacy.”

He
grinned and every single part of her tingled. He was as attractive as she
remembered—tall and strong, with rich, chocolate-brown hair, and a twinkle of
mischief in his startling green eyes. The years had changed him only slightly,
taking away the softness of youth and adding hard ridges and planes to his
handsome face. His hair was a little too long, and he had a two-day beard, but
the scruffiness didn’t take away from his almost poetic good looks. And though
she would never admit it out loud, just the way his thighs filled out his
well-worn blue jeans sent a thread of wicked heat trickling down her spine. Ten
was the stuff of all kinds of naughty fantasies, and a few of her favorite ones
instantly flashed through her mind.

World-renowned
neurosurgeon, jet fighter pilot, secret member of American royalty, seducer of
legions of beautiful, outrageously sexy angels and demons and vampires and
werewolves and the occasional pirate, Lisa Fox has done it all…in her own mind.
In reality, she can generally be found at her desk with a cup of coffee close
at hand. Or maybe a martini. It really depends on the day.

Lisa Fox is a multi-published author of contemporary,
erotic, and paranormal romance novellas. Feedback, comments, opinions, words of
wisdom, chocolate cake and the addresses of super hot men are always
appreciated and encouraged. Please feel free to contact Lisa any time.